Patty Halliwell, The Untold Story
by jaspershero16
Summary: Patty Halliwell is known as the mother of the Charmed Ones who died when they were very young. But before she was the mother of the most powerful witches in the world, she was a young woman trying to find her way. Patty's young life was filled with sorrow, feelings of inferiority and a journey to carve her own path.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A young woman lays in her bed staring at the ceiling. She has beautiful brown hair and a smile that can light up a room.

It was the autumn of 1967 and it had been a few months since Patty Halliwell's father, Allen, had died. She still felt lost and confused and missed him every day. She half expected him to walk through her door at anytime, but she knew he wouldn't. What made it even worse was that Patty knew there was a way she could talk to her father, but her mother forbade it. You see, Patty wasn't a regular girl. She was a witch. The current generation in a long line of very powerful witches, actually. Because of this, she knew her family had crafted some very powerful magic. She knew there was a spell in their Book of Shadows that would help her talk to her father, but she couldn't access it right now.

Her mother, Penny, had been different since her father died. Her mom had spent Patty's entire childhood teaching her about peace and love. She had only seen her mother fight a demon once, and it was because there was no other choice. Her mother had always been focused on perfecting her power and making potions to help people. Penny was one of the most powerful telekinetic witches Patty had ever met. Her mom had even written a spell that would awaken someone that was affected by poison. But in the past few months, her mother seemed to want nothing more than to fight and vanquish demons. Her mother was constantly writing in the Book of Shadows about demons she faced and the ways to vanquish them. And she was always putting pages back into the book that she had previously taken out. There were entire sections that she had always told Patty were too dangerous and violent to be there.

Patty was lost in thought when suddenly, there was a loud crash downstairs!

"MOM?!", Patty yelled as she ran downstairs to check on her mother.

Patty arrived downstairs to see her mother dodging a fireball being hurled at her and hitting the chair behind her.

"Mom!", Patty yells.

"Patty, go back upstairs now!"

The man dressed in all black turns and fixes his gaze on young Patty. Suddenly, he conjures a fireball in his hand and throws it at her. She throws her hands up quickly, freezing the fireball in midair and freezing the demon in place. Penny points her hand at the fireball and uses her telekinesis to throw it back at the demon. As the fireball makes impact, the demon unfreezes and yells before being engulfed in flames and exploding.

Penny runs to her daughter.

"Honey, are you ok?", Penny asks as she looks her daughter over.

"I'm fine mom."

"Good reflexes, darling. He caught you off guard and you still stopped the fireball. I'm so proud of you."

"Mom, what was going on? Why didn't you tell me a demon was attacking? I could've helped."

"Sweetheart, we've been over this. You're too young to fight demons. And he didn't exactly attack. I summoned him."

"What! Why?!"

"Well, I've been doing research on lower level demons and wanted to see if a spell or potion would do the job, but it looks like throwing their attack back at them works just fine. I'll have to note that."

"Are you serious? You're INVITING demons into the house now?!"

"Sweetheart, it's the only way I know how to fight them."

"I can't believe you!"

Patty turned from her mother and ran back upstairs. She slammed the door as hard as she could and laid on her bed.

Penny ran after her daughter and knocked on Patty's bedroom door.

"Sweetheart, can I come in?"

"Whatever.", Patty replied.

Penny went into her daughter's room and sat next to her on the bed.

"My love, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

Patty sat up and stared at her mother. "After what happened to Dad, I can't believe you'd actually do something so reckless."

Penny was shocked and looked like she didn't know what to say.

"Honey, I-. I didn't mean to hurt you. I know you miss your father. I miss everyday too, but-"

"But what, mom? You're trying to join him?"

"Patty, darling, no."

"Well you could've, Mom. I could've walked downstairs and found out I'm an orphan. Then what? Hm? What happens then?"

Penny pulls her daughter into an embrace with tears in her eyes.

"Honey, I never want to hurt you. And I am so sorry that I scared you like that. I promise I am going to do everything in my power to avoid hurting you again."

"I just don't want you to get hurt. I don't think I could survive if something happened to you too."

"Oh sweetheart. I promise you'll never have to worry about that. Hey, I've got an idea. Why don't we go down to that restaurant you like and get a burger?"

"Mom."

"Oh come on." Penny started tickling her daughter and got a few giggles out of her.

"There it is. That beautiful smile. The smile that brings so much joy to my life. I don't ever want to be the reason that smile goes away."

Patty looked at her mother. She was still mad, but she guessed she could forgive her this one time.

"Just...just be careful. Ok?"

"I promise. Now go ahead and get ready. We'll head out to eat."

A little later, Patty and Penny arrived to the restaurant.

They sat down and ordered their food. Patty got her usual, a cheeseburger with fries and a strawberry milkshake. Her dad loved to take her there every Saturday. But money had been tight since he died, so she hadn't been in months.

"Honey, is the club sandwich any good?"

"Oh yeah, it's great! I had it once and it was sooo good."

"I think I'll get that then. Hmmm. Maybe instead of fries, I'll get chips. Because..."

Patty's mom was talking, but she wasn't listening. Her attention was elsewhere. There he was. Just as handsome as ever. Victor Bennett was the cutest boy in her class. And sometime before they graduated, she knew she had to talk to him.

"Hello. Hello! Earth to Patty."

"Hm? What? I'm sorry, I didn't hear what you said."

"Let me guess. Looking at that Bennett boy, Vincent, again."

"Victor, mom. His name is Victor."

"Well, whatever his name is, you leave him right where he's at. Men are nothing but trouble."

"Mom, Victor is so sweet. He's on the football team and in the entrepreneur club. I think he'll be ok. Plus, Dad was a man and he wasn't trouble."

"That's different. Allen wasn't just any man. He was special."

"Maybe Victor will be special for me."

Penny looked at her daughter, who had put her face on her hand and was staring at the Bennett boy. She didn't want her daughter to get hurt, but knew she'd have to make her own decisions in life.

"Oh my God.", Patty exclaimed.

"What, sweetheart?"

"Victor. I think he's walking over here."

Sure enough, Victor walked over to Penny and Patty's table. He was a tall young man. Very good looking with brown hair, similar to Patty's. He was lean and muscular. He was the boy next door who had a bright future.

"Hi Patty. Hi Mrs. Halliwell. Hope you guys are doing ok today."

"We're doing just fine, Vince."

"Oh my name's Victor, Mrs. Halliwell."

"That's nice, dear. So did you come to tell me about you given name or is there a reason you're here?"

"Mom! Victor, please excuse her."

"Oh. N-no, it's fine!", Victor exclaimed nervously. "I-um. I just wanted to ask a question."

"Sure, go ahead."

"Patty, I was wondering if you wanted to go with me to the Winter Dance."

Patty was shocked and nervously threw her hands up.

"Patty. Dear. Did you mean to turn the restaurant into a garden of statues or was that an accident?", Penny quipped.

"I got nervous and it just happened. Ugh."

"Well sweetheart, at least this gives you time to think of how you're going to let him down."

"What? Oh no. I'm going. Victor Bennett just asked me to the winter dance. I'm going."

"I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Mom. I'm 17. I'm not a baby!"

Penny looked at her daughter and saw the determination on her face. She knew that look. Allen used to give her the same looks and she knew there was nothing that could get in her daughter's way.

"Fine, I'll allow it. But he better do right by you."

"Ohhhh thank you mom! I love you, I love you, I love you!", Patty said as she kissed her mother's cheek.

Patty calmed herself and waved her hand in a circular motion, unfreezing the room.

"Of course! I'd love to go with you!"

"Great, I'll pick you up Saturday at 6. Mrs. Halliwell, is that ok?"

"Well I'm sure I can tear myself away from my knitting and I Love Lucy reruns long enough to watch my daughter walk to the door."

Patty looked at her mother out of the corner of her eye.

"Okkkk.", Victor replied. "See you Saturday, Patty."

"See you then, Victor."

Victor walked away from the Halliwell women and returned to his friends, who all gave him high 5s. He looked over at Patty and smiled. He was flirting with just his eyes and it was the cutest thing she'd ever seen. She could tell he had talked to his friends about her and was happy that he thought of her the way she had been thinking of him.

"He's cute", Penny said in a snarky tone after seeing the look of infatuation on her daughter's face, "but so are puppies. You might consider getting one of those first."

"Mom! Stop it."

The waitress brought the women their food and told them to let her know if they needed anything else.

"Mom, just give him a chance. I promise he's not like other guys."

"OK. But if he hurts you, I'll kick him in the-"

"JUST! Enjoy your food and we'll talk more about it later."

As the women ate their lunch, a woman in the corner watched them. She had seen the entire exchange and left the restaurant with a smirk on her face.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Patty was upstairs getting ready for school. She still couldn't believe that Victor has asked her out. It blew her mind. Of all the girls in school, why was he attracted to her? Her mind raced as she brushed her hair. What if they got serious? Could he handle her being a witch? Would he want to? Knew it was too early for her to think of these things, but she couldn't help it. She was so excited.

She left her room and searched for her mother so she could ask her a question.

"Mom? Mom, where are you?"

"In the attic honey."

"Of course." Patty whispered to herself as she made her way up the staircase to the attic.

Patty walked in the attic to the sight of her mother with their Book of Shadows on a table along with other books and a pad of paper. As Patty walked in, she could see her mother flip the pages of the notepad so the contents couldn't be seen.

"Mom, what are you doing?"

"Oh, just some light reading dear."

"Light reading, huh?"

Patty picked up a book titled "_Planetary Alignment and Its Demonic Implications" _and showed it to her mother.

"Those old books are hoot to read.", Patty said nervously.

"Is there something going on that I need to know about?"

"No, sweetheart. I promise. There's nothing for you to worry about. I'm just trying to write a spell to help us vanquish those lower level demons that randomly attack."

"I thought you said they didn't a spell."

"Well, they technically don't. But I thought about if we're in a situation where we don't get to use our powers."

"What do you have so far?", Patty asked.

"So far, all I can come up with is hell spun demon, creature of death. I think I have writer's block though. I'm stuck. Anyway, are you headed to school, my love?"

"Yep. But I wanted to ask if I could go to Aunt Janice's house after school today. She's gonna help me with my dress for the dance."

"Sweetheart. We have an entire sewing room here in the manor."

"I know. But I don't get a chance to see her that often. Plus, I want to talk to her about Victor."

"Darling. You can talk to me about Variant."

Patty looked at her mother and raised an eyebrow.

"You're right. Go ahead. And give Janice my love?"

"Thanks mom! And I will, I promise."

Patty kissed her mother on the cheek and turned to leave the attic.

"Fire shall take your very breath."

"Whaaa?", Penny asked confusedly.

"For your spell. The last part will cover them in flames and vanquish them." Patty left the attic to hurry and get to school.

"Damn that's good. Why didn't I think of that?"

As Patty walked up the steps to school, she spoke to the kids who passed her. Then, her friend Marnie came running up. Marnie was dressed in her usual bell bottoms, and platform shoes. Today, she had on a cute pink halter top and had her hair in pigtails. Her style was one of Patty's favorite things about her.

"Patty! Hey!"

"Oh hey Marnie!"

"Everyone's talking about how you're going to the dance with Victor!"

"What?!"

"Yep! You're the talk of the town."

Patty had always been popular, but she didn't actively try to be. She just tried to be friendly and treat everyone with respect. She knew what it was like to feel overlooked and didn't ever want to make other people feel that way.

"So are they actually saying these things out loud or are they thinking them?"

"Eh. A little of both."

"Mhm. Just like I thought."

Marnie and Patty had been friends since they were in kindergarten. Her parents were best friends with Marnie's parents. Marnie and her family were witches as well. Marnie had the power of telepathy, and had only learned to control it in the past few years. When they were children, she would respond to people about things they hadn't said out loud. She was so glad that she finally had a handle on her powers.

"Oh Patty, come on! Even if they're only thinking it, you're still the most popular girl in school!"

"No, that would be Alyssa Tom."

"Oh my God, you haven't heard?"

"Heard what?"

"Alyssa went missing over the weekend."

Patty's heart sunk. She and Alyssa had never been close friends, but her parents used to come to Penny and Allen's parties in the manor. No one besides Marnie and Patty knew that Alyssa was a witch as well.

"Marnie, are you sure?"

"Sure as I've ever been. Her mom called mine last night asking if she was at our house. She said they haven't seen her since Saturday night."

"Maybe she's playing like she did when we were kids."

"Her parents thought of that too. They thought maybe she smoked something bad and was just on a trip. Her dad cast that spell he used to use to find her, but they can't."

Alyssa had the power to turn invisible. When they were kids, Alyssa would play what she called "super hide and go seek". She'd use her powers and no one would be able to find her for hours at a time. So her father wrote a spell that counteracted her powers. He would use it every time too much time had passed.

"Wow. That's creepy. Didn't that other girl go missing a few weeks ago? Was she a witch?"

"I'm not sure, but my folks won't let me go anywhere after dark. They're paranoid."

"My mom must not know. She's letting me go to Aunt Janice's house tonight."

"I'm surprised she lets you go anywhere.", Marnie muttered under her breath.

"Marnie!"

"Ugh, I'm sorry. Its just that your mom's been a real drag lately."

"Well, I'm sorry that not everyone can get over losing their husband in a few days."

"No, Patty. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it that way. Its just…I miss you. We used to spend everyday together. And now it feels like I only see you at school."

"You're right, Marnie. That's really the only time I get to go anywhere. I miss daddy so much, but I'm stuck in the house with all of his things and it's hard to get move on. Its just hard."

Marnie hugged Patty.

"I'm so sorry. I know its been hard since he died. How about this. What if this weekend, we convince your mom to let us go to the movies. I heard the Jungle Book is gonna be awesome."

"Marnie, isn't that a kids movie?"

"Yeah, but you know I love a good cartoon."

The two girls giggled and walked off to class together.

Back at the manor, Penny was still hard at work studying the book. But she wasn't just writing a vanquishing spell. She knew about the missing girls and knew that there was more to the story. Both girls were witches that had powers that were unique. One girl had the power to turn herself invisible and the other had the power to conjure items out of thin air. These seemed like two very specific powers and ones that are quite rare.

"Damnit!"

Penny shouted and closed the Book of Shadows. She had been working on this all day and wasn't getting anywhere. She knew there was something big going on and that she wouldn't be able to handle it and protect Patty at the same time. It was time to do something she promised she'd never do.

Penny took in a deep breath.

"REBECCA!", Penny shouted.

A blond woman who appeared to be in her mid 50s appeared in the room surrounded by beautiful white orbs of light. She was dressed as if the library was about to open and she was the only one tasked with keeping it quiet. Her hair was in a bun and she was the stereotypical authoritarian Penny had spent her life trying to avoid.

"Well, well. If it isn't Penelope Halliwell.", the woman said in the snarkiest tone imaginable.

"Hello to you as well, Rebecca. And its Penny, by the way."

"Yes. Well, what brings me here, Penelope? It's been what, 4 years since we last spoke?"

All good witches were assigned whitelighters. Rebecca was Penny's whitelighter, but she had always refused to call for her unless absolutely necessary. Rebecca was too much like Penny's mother. She was rigid and believed that the rules were the only thing that kept the peace. Even before Penny met Allen, she had always believed rules were meant to be broken. She couldn't imagine being like her mother and Rebecca. She hoped she would never become that person.

"Rebecca, there's something going on and I think a demon is responsible."

"What's happened?"

"Two young witches around Patty's age have gone missing. One had the power to turn invisible and the other was a conjurer."

"Oh? Do you think the demon targeted them for their powers? Could it possibly be a warlock?"

"I'm not sure. But I'm worried about Patty."

"Did something happen to her?"

"No, nothing like that. But this demon seems to be targeting witches that have rare abilities. I've met a lot of witches in my time. Patty and my mother were the only ones I've ever met that could freeze time."

"Do you think the demon will try to come after her?"

"I don't know. But I know I won't be able to be there for her all the time. I think its time we introduce her to Sam."

Rebecca was shocked. Penny had always been opposed to Patty meeting her whitelighter because she didn't want her daughter to feel she had to answer anyone. Rebecca knew this was serious.

"I'll speak to him and the Elders at once."

"Wait. Can you bring Patty to the Manor first? She should be out of school and I really want to let her know what's going on so she's not blindsided."

"Of course."

Rebecca orbed out of the room and was headed to find Patty. Penny was worried, but hoped she was doing the right thing. She couldn't lose Patty like she lost Allen. She wouldn't let evil take her family from her.

Patty was walking to her Aunt Janice's house. Marnie was supposed to walk home with her, but her parents came to get her from school. They must really be scared. She can't believe her mom didn't know what was going on.

Patty felt a chill and couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. She heard a rustling in the bushes. She looked over, but didn't see anything. She felt there was something going on, and if her mother had taught her anything, it was that a Warren witch always follows her instincts. She couldn't remember the spell that Alyssa's dad used to cast, so she had to improvise.

"I call on my magic to intervene, uncloak the one who can't be seen."

A shimmer of white light covered a woman who was crouching behind a bush.

"Who are you?!", Patty yelled.

Before Patty could freeze her, the woman threw down a potion that allowed her to disappear in a cloud of smoke. Rebecca then orbed next to Patty.

"Rebecca? What are you-"

"Patty, your mother sent me to get you. She needs to speak with you."

Patty hadn't seen Rebecca since she was little. If her mother was sending Rebecca after her, things must be bad.

"Is she ok?"

"Oh yes, dear. She just needs to speak with you. Come along."

Patty took Rebecca's hand and they began orbing to the manor. Patty looked over at the bushes one last time. She knew that whatever was happening, it was getting bad and she didn't know what was ahead.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Patty and Rebecca arrived at the manor. Penny immediately ran over to her daughter to make sure she was alright.

"Sweetheart, are you ok?", Penny asked as she touched Patty's face and looked her over.

"I'm fine. But mom, I was headed to Aunt Janice's house and there was this weird lady in the bushes."

"What did she look like, my love?"

"She had brown hair and pale skin. She looked like she was round your age. But the weird thing is, she was invisible at first. I don't know if it was a spell or a power. I had to make up a spell to reveal her though. It was so weird. And she used a potion to disappear."

"Wait. She used a potion to disappear?"

"Yeah. She had it in her hand like she was worried someone would find her."

"Honey. Did you see anything else about what she looked like? Anything distinctive?"

Patty remembered seeing something, but couldn't remember what it was.

"Yes.", Patty said sadly. "But it was so small, I only got a small glance at it. I don't remember what it was."

"That's ok, sweetheart. If it comes to you, it comes. If not, that's ok too. But Patty, there's a reason that I sent Rebecca after you."

"Mom, is everything alright?"

"Oh yes, my love."

"Its just that I know you've been wanting to learn more about magic and grow your power. So, there's someone I want you to meet, and Rebecca's going to go get them for you so they can help you."

"Ok…."

Penny nodded at Rebecca, who orbed out of the room.

"Mom. I'm not a kid anymore. Please tell me what's going on."

"Patty, I promise you nothing major is happening. I just want you to have a guide while you're practicing your magic. That's all."

Patty knew there was something else going on. Her mother hated the idea of whitelighters. She never liked feeling that she had to answer to anyone. She had nothing but contempt for Patty's grandma and great aunt Phoebe's whitelighter. Though, their whitelighter had been born in 1802 and was very conservative. She only met her one time, but she was definitely a product of her time. Between her and Rebecca, Patty could almost see why Penny hated them so.

"Mom, if there's something going on, I think I deserve to know. Especially if I'm in danger."

Penny's eyes darted to Patty's face.

"What do you mean? Has someone tried to hurt you?"

"No. But that woman in the bushes. She seemed like she was watching me. I don't know for sure. But I don't think she was expecting me to realize there was someone there and she certainly didn't expect me to magically unveil her."

"Patty. You have to be careful. There's-"

Before Penny could finish her sentence, Rebecca orbed into the room.

"Patricia, Penelope. There's someone that would like to meet you."

A man orbed into the manor and stood before the Halliwell women.

"Oh.", Patty exclaimed in a confused, but interested tone.

"Hi. I'm Sam. Sam Wilder. And I'll be your whitelighter."

"I'm Patty."

"Oh, I know who you are."

Sam reached out his hand to shake Patty's with a smile on his face. Patty nervously shook his hand. He was so handsome and had beautiful blue eyes. She could get lost in them. He looked like he was in his 30s. His beard was adorably peppered with grey. She wondered what age he was when he became a whitelighter.

"Um. Honey?", Penny asked.

Patty came to the realization that she was staring at Sam and smiling as she shook his hand.

"Oh. Yeah. I, um. I was just….excited. Excited that I have a whitelighter."

"_Smooth recovery, Patty_.", she thought to herself.

"Right. Well. Sam will be your whitelighter. Your guide. Just as I am to your mother."

Penny rolled her eyes as Rebecca smirked at her.

"Well this is all just lovely. And its very nice to meet you Sam. But Mom, can I still go to Aunt Janice's?"

"Really? You just met your whitelighter and you want to go to Janice's house?", Penny asked in an annoyed tone.

"Yeah. Mom, I told you what she was going to help me with."

"Ok, Sam will walk with you."

"Mom. Its two blocks away."

"Sam will go with you."

"Sam, whitelighters can hear their charges' calls, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"Ok, great. If I need you, I'll call." Patty turned and kissed her mother on the cheek. "See you guys later."

"God, she's so pigheaded.", Penny said.

"Wonder where she gets it from.", Rebecca said as she smirked.

"I was never rebellious towards you or mother."

"Need I bring up Armand?"

Penny paused.

"Point proven. Anyway. Sam, please protect my daughter. I can't lose her."

"I promise Penny. I'll make sure she's safe."

Sam orbed out of the room to keep an eye on Patty. Penny sat on the couch and put her face in her hands as she let out a sigh.

"Penelope, are you that worried about her?", Rebecca asked in a worried tone.

"She's a Warren. And a Halliwell. Warren women are gifted and resilient. The Halliwell women I met aren't exactly pushovers themselves. Alan's mom raised him and Janice all on her own after her husband died. I always admired her strength. I never thought I'd have to replicate it though."

"Penelope. If I know anything about you, its that you're one tough cookie. You've survived so much and faced every challenge head on. Now is the time for you to show your daughter not only how strong you are, but how strong she can be. Patricia is much more powerful than she realizes. Trust me, she'll be ok."

With a tear in her eye, Penny responded. "Thank you, Rebecca. I don't know why I hadn't called you earlier."

"Because you're pigheaded."

The two women shared a laugh. Suddenly, a male whitelighter orbed into the manor with a young boy.

"Are you Penny Halliwell. The Warren witch?"

"Yeah. Who's asking?"

"My name is Clarence. And this is my charge, Jacob. I think we may need your help."

Patty walked on the curb heading to her aunt's home. She couldn't stop thinking about what happed earlier and wondered if that was why mother was acting so strangely. She was being secretive, which she had become used to, but she was also being clingy. That was new and it worried Patty. Were things that bad? Patty stopped in her tracks and stood in place.

"You can come out now. I know you're there, Sam."

"How did you-"

"You're horrible at following people. Plus, did you forget that I can stop time? I thought it was you about 2 minutes into my walk. I froze you and saw you lurking."

Sam was so embarrassed. A 17 year old had figured him out and he hadn't even been around her for 24 hours.

"Yeah. I should've known you'd figure it out. You're an intelligent person."

"How would you know that? You just met me like 10 minutes ago."

"Oh, whitelighters are assigned at birth. I've been watching you since you were a baby."

"That's-"

"Disgusting and creepy? Yeah, we get that a lot."

"So if you've been watching me for that long, why haven't I ever met you?"

"Well, whitelighters are assigned to charges, but we come when we're needed most. For some witches, we don't show up until their powers manifest."

"What made you meet me then? I've had my powers my whole life. I love being a witch."

"Your mother wants to make sure that you have someone with you while you learn your magic."

"If she's so worried about me advancing my magic, why won't she let me near the book of shadows?"

"I- I wouldn't know anything about that."

"Umhm. Just what I thought. Sam, you're nice, but just leave me alone. And when you talk to my mother, tell her that the book is my legacy too. Not just hers."

Patty turned and walked off. She was every bit as stubborn as her mother when she wanted to be. Her mother couldn't keep treating her like a child. She was going to get her hands on the Book of Shadows if it was the last thing she did.

Patty arrived to her aunt Janice's house. She loved it there. It was calm and peaceful. There were so many memories of her father there. She could almost feel his presence.

"There's my little butterbean!"

Janice ran to her niece and hugged her. Her hugs were particularly tight because Janice was a very strong woman. At 6 feet tall, she was always an athlete and working on maintaining her strength and physique. Her long, red hair brushed against Patty's face as she held her in a tight embrace.

"Aunt Janice?", Patty squeaked out.

"Yeah?"

"Can you let me go? I can't breathe."

Janice ended the bear hug and Patty inhaled as if she had been holding her breath for 5 minutes.

"Sorry Patty. I just get so happy when I see you. You look so much like Alan."

Patty's aunt became somber as she glanced at a picture of her brother.

"I never thought I could miss someone this much."

"I miss him too. I still can't believe he's gone."

"Well. He wouldn't want us here crying, now would he? No. He would want us to live our lives with joy. And speaking of joy."

Janice pulled out a beautiful sleeveless, navy blue dress. It flared out at the waist and reminded Patty of something Audrey Hepburn might wear. She was Patty's favorite actress.

"Oh Aunt Janice, its beautiful! It looks like its right out of a movie!", Patty exclaimed as she held the dress in front of herself. She ran to the nearest mirror and began to twirl. "Did you make this?"

"I did. I have a friend who's a costume designer and she's helped make dresses for a few pictures. She helped me design it, and I did the rest. I wanted to make something as beautiful as my gorgeous niece."

Patty beamed as her aunt lovingly caressed her face.

"This dress is beautiful. I don't know how to thank you."

"You don't have to thank me, butterbean. We're family. And family takes care of one another."

"I just know Victor will love it."

"Hmmm. Well, tell me more about this Victor."

"Oh, he's so handsome. He has beautiful dark hair, he's tall and lean. He's the star quarterback, and every girl in school wants to be his girlfriend. I honestly don't know why he wants to go to the dance with me."

"Patricia Halliwell. Why would you say that?"

"Well, I just mean that he could have any girl in school. Why would he want to go with me?"

"Because you're gorgeous. You're amazing. And most of all, because you have a light that shines through. When you smile, its like the sun shines harder. The moon gleams brighter. And the room is filled with a warmth that blankets you. Any boy would lucky to go to the dance with you."

Janice always had such beautiful words. Patty didn't think she was ugly by any means. But her mother was so beautiful. She always admired her mother's beauty and her strength. She knew no one would ever see her the way she saw Penny. But Janice made her feel like she was the most beautiful girl in the world.

"Thank you Aunt Janice.", Patty said as she smiled.

"Now, come on. Let's do some alterations."

"Ok."

As Patty and Janice walked to the back of the home to do their alterations, the blond woman from before glared into the window, unseen by Janice and Patty.

Back at the manor, Penny and Rebecca spoke to Jacob and Clarence. Clarence was a tall and somewhat muscular man with a short afro. His ebony skin glistened and looked smooth as silk. His voice boomed and commanded the attention of everyone who was in the room. Jacob was a little darker than Clarence and his afro was much bigger. He looked like he was around Patty's age.

Penny returned to the living room with a glass of water for Jacob.

"Honey, I can imagine the day you've had. That's quite a bit to handle. Especially at your age."

"Jacob tried calling for me, but I think the place he was being held was cloaked by magic."

"How did you get away from her?", Penny asked.

"Well, at first I couldn't. She knew my power. Its like she had been studying it. But she didn't know everything about them."

"What do you mean?"

"She knew about my forcefield. She created 3 clones of herself."

"I don't understand. How was that bad?"

"She had 3 clones. One on either side of me, and then one in front of me."

"Oh, I get it. You channel your powers through your hands. So you can only project two at any given time."

"Exactly. I haven't mastered projecting one without my hands yet."

"But that doesn't explain how you got away.", Rebecca stated in confusion.

"She did something strange. She conjured up an energy ball. She didn't generate it, I could tell she conjured it because it was surrounded by the same orange light that my friend Jane's conjurations did. But she didn't know that I had the power of deflection and I was able to hit her with her own attack."

Penny was quite impressed. Forcefields are a rare power among witches, but the power of deflection is even more rare. It's a genetic power that only about 5 families have ever been documented to have.

"You must be a very powerful witch. Those gifts are very rare."

"Jacob is quite strong. Which is why I try to encourage him to do all he can to grow his powers. He could be one of the most powerful if he applied himself."

"Yeah, yeah, I know.", Jacob playfully responded to his whitelighter. The two of them seemed to have a strong bond and Jacob looked up to Clarence. Penny had once wanted to be friends with Rebecca, but she just couldn't handle the way she tried to control her.

"So sweetie, I know this was a horrible experience for you, but do you remember anything that may help us? Anything about her that stood out to you?

"Actually, yeah. When she generated the fireball and cloned herself, she didn't really seem to know what she was doing. She had to concentrate really hard and it was like she had been practicing how to do it. I honestly don't think they were her natural powers. And I don't think she was a warlock because she couldn't blink. Or at least if she could, she didn't."

"Hm."

"Oh! And there was this weird tattoo on her arm."

"What did it look like?", Penny asked.

"It was two triangles overlapping. But they weren't in black ink, they were red."

Penny and Rebecca immediately met each other's gazes. Both women widened their eyes shared a look of confusion and shock. They knew exactly what was happening and who the woman was. Penny couldn't believe it. She thought this was over. She didn't think she would ever have to deal with her again. It all made sense now.

"Carana."


End file.
